Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		2.5

Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 20, 2024

If legends like Sergio Leone and Sam Peckinpah were busy reinventing the western in the mid to late sixties with efforts like The Man with No Name Trilogy and/or The Wild Bunch, some arguably less renowned folks were also approaching the venerable genre with equally provocative offerings. Severin is curating some western themed exploitation fare from Bob Cresse and Lee Frost with both this release and The Scavengers, though Hot Spur came first and kind of established a "template" of sorts that the follow up also utilized. That includes a more or less "traditional" western setting but one with a rather liberal dose of misogyny, full frontal females, and an almost alarming number of sexual assaults. The fact that both of the Blu-ray releases of these Cresse - Frost efforts offer commentaries from an aggregation of people associated with various labels (some of whom have at least at times been competitors, as the commentators actually overtly mention) might suggest that however "limited" the niche appeal of these releases may be in general, that appeal can be quite strong in some individuals. Those unacquainted with either Hot Spur or The Scavengers had probably best steel themselves for some sleazy goings on in the very wild west, and if Cresse's kind of hilarious PR blurb that Hot Spur offered "91 minutes of Freudian fury" might be more self revelatory than intended, the film has a visceral quality that isn't necessarily due entirely to some of the misogynistic elements.

It's somewhat instructive in terms of a kind of overarching moral turpitude suffusing Hot Spur that seeming good guy Carlos (James Arena), who has the misfortune to see his sister raped in the film's opening vignette, turns out to engage in some of that very same "activity" later in the story, albeit ostensibly for "revenge". As is discussed in some of the supplements on both this disc and The Scavengers, both of these films were examples of a so-called "roughie" subgenre that may not have really cared all that much about narrative niceties, and instead wanted to offer as many lurid depictions of bad guys doing bad things to naked women as possible, albeit never in anything really even approaching soft core status, and instead focusing mostly on the groping of unclothed females. That said, there's still a rather interesting subtext of racial discrimination and disturbing if melodramatic interactions that may offer a surprising amount of energy.

Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Hot Spur is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.38:1. The back cover of this release advertises it as being "restored uncensored for the first time ever" while also mentioning that it has been "scanned uncut in 4K from the recently rediscovered negative". The results are pretty astounding looking for such a little known cult item. Lee Frost's style can include some askew framings and what looks like handheld material, but detail levels are remarkably intact throughout this presentation, and fine detail on elements like the burlap "curtains" in a hideaway shack are typically commendable. The palette is also very nicely suffused for the most part, and the brightly lit outdoor material in particular pops extremely well. There are some minor clarity and shadow definition deficits in some blue graded day for night material. Grain resolves naturally throughout.

Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hot Spur features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track which is perfectly supportive of an obviously lower budgeted sound design. While there are some requisite sound effects in outdoor material or some of the action (of the non sexual variety) scenes, a lot of the track's energy comes from a rather nice score by D. Roger Martin which has some good use of brass in particular. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout.

Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Vinegar Syndrome's Joe Rubin, Severin Films' Andrew Furtado and Bobo Cresse Friend / Former Something Weird General Manager Tim Lewis


• Recently Discovered Audio Discussion on Frost / Cresse by David F. Friedman and Something Weird Founder Mike Vraney plays as a kind of alternate audio commentary track.


• Hollywood's World of Flesh - Early Frost / Cresse Feature (HD; 1:04:16) is a kind of hilariously lo-fi quasi-Mondo look at things like exotic dancers and nude models.


• The Casting Director - Rare Short starring Bob Cresse, Directed by David F. Friedman (HD; 6:17) is subtitled "An Adult Fable" and is kind of simultaneously smarmy and relatively harmless.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 6:15) features Bob Cresse and seems to be aimed more at potential exhibitors rather than potential audiences.


• Teaser (HD; 00:47)

Hot Spur Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Perhaps just slightly amazingly, the back cover of this release mentions that Hot Spur was named one of the Top 10 Movies of 1969 by the National Review, which suggests to me that maybe whoever was reviewing then for that publication (John Simon?) may have bucked his conservative colleagues and engaged in a little substance augmentation when viewing. I did find a great pull quote from the publication saying Hot Spur is "more dynamic than True Grit, and sexier than I Am Curious - Yellow", which again suggests to me some kind of critical alternate universe that just kind of delights me. There's a gritty, contemptible quality to virtually all of the male characters in this story, and even the focal female (played by Virginia Gordon) isn't exactly a shining example of goodness and mercy. Technical merits are surprisingly strong and the supplements very enjoyable, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.